Call renewed to place Hurricane Katrina breach sites on register

An advocacy group is renewing an effort to have a site where a levee failed during Hurricane Katrina placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The National Park Service last year rejected a proposal that was pushed by Levees.org, aided by state historic preservation officials. That proposal called for a site at the 17th Street Canal, and one in the Lower 9th Ward to be placed on the register.

The new effort will focus on the 17th Street Canal site alone, eliminating the need for comment from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which owns the Lower 9th Ward site.

The corps opposed the nomination last year, saying it could complicate litigation arising from the 2005 disaster.